The Haunting Past
by Megami no Nekura
Summary: First someone follows her, then a picture... then a mysterious spirit. What does it all mean? When a new shaman comes to Tokyo, is Anna's life really in danger? (Rated for violencedeath)
1. Mystery and a Picture

Hennessy, thank you for the first review. As soon as I found out, I started this fanfiction. To animeking, Luna*Sky and YamiandAnzu4ever (if I messed up any names, forgive me. the internet at school is out and I'm doing it by memory). Another thing to note: Hao is going to be in this fanfiction, unfortunately; I'm going by what I've seen in a few fanfictions and learnt off of a shrine I found (I'm stuck watching the FOX Kids version, no Hao-sama yet *cries*). 

One more thing, I recently came across a listing of sound effects, and because I have two characters based on friends, one speaks only sound effects, and I'll have those listed at the top of every chapter along with anything else that needs to be translated or explained. Cross my Heart - second ending to Ayashi no Ceres (upbeat and enjoyable)   
pori pori - crunching, like someone eating cookies   
agi agi - bite, gnaw, sing kawaii lil' fangs into   
kiiii - long, high-pitched sound (hysterical scream?)   
meso meso - "whimper" or "sniffle" 

Part One :: Mystery and a Picture 

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Most days start and end the exact same way, as one long, very boring pattern, and whatever happened between those two moments were what varied on a daily basis. For Anna Kyouyama, the life of a spirit medium was never boring; add in an aspiring shaman to the mix and suddenly nothing was the same. The name of that shaman: Yoh Asakura. Talented, but slighted directed, he gave her the daily challenge she enjoyed. Then there was little Manta. He could be surprising when he wanted to be, but he played such a little role in the big picture. 

Anna walked down the usually serene dirt road, on her way back to her current home. She stayed at Yoh's home, along with Amidamaru. The tune of _Cross my Heart_ played itself continuously in her mind and occassionally escaped her lips. The sunset seemed perfect, as it did every night about this time as she watched it while waiting for Yoh to return home after his exercises, and for Manta to make them dinner. 

Every aspect of this day seemed average for her, with the exception of the nagging suspicion that someone was following her, watching her every move. But no one would think that the medium had noted an unusual presence from her calm and powerful demeanour as she kept a steady walking pace. 

She stopped suddenly, and in a swift movement spun around to face the one who was following her. 

Nothing. not a trace of anyone in view. Probably just some harmless, curious spirit. 

Her heart was racing as she scanned everything in sight, though her expression remained calm, reserved and revealed no proof that she was shaken. She would not reveal her fear; nothing would strip her of her well earned respect. 

"I guess you're just afraid to show yourself," she stated, then continued on her way. 

-- * -- 

"Hey, Anna," Manta called out to the young woman as she entered the household, "you got some mail. A package." 

"Oh," came her reluctant response. 

Manta sighed and shook his head. He pactically lived with the two, three if you counted Amidamaru, and was almost never at home anymore. As far as the 'ice queen' (as he called her in his head) was concerned, he was hired help, but without the pay. He considered it a small price to pay for the chance to have real friends and live the exciting life as the best friend of Yoh Asakura, even if not every moment was exciting in a good way. 

He shuddered, recalling his first encounters with shamans like Ren and Faust. There was more than one moment in there he never wanted to experience ever again. 

"What would you like for dinner, Anna?" he asked politely as she entered the room, carrying the small parcel lazily in one hand. 

"Whatever," she replied distractedly. "I don't care." 

He turnedaway from the sink and stared at her in slight disbelief. Anna Kyouyama had just given him permission to make them the dinner of _his_ choice, and did not place any restrictions. Something had to be wrong. 

"Oh, Yoh's relaxing out in the hot tub," he told herm still watching her, but with more curiosity now. 

"I'll get him later," she snapped, leaning against the counter as she examined the dull, light-brown wrapping of the package. 

The package was small, and fairly thin, with an off white string tied around it. At first it seemed as though it might have been a picture frame or maybe a box holding some sort of trinket, but Manta was not sure anymore. She ignored him as she tugged on the string and carelessly ripped the paper away from the object hidden inside. 

"Huh?" the both cried out as a picture frame was revealed. 

Manta looked up to examine Anna's expression, full of shock and seemingly horrified. She slammed the frame, face down, on the counter. The sound of glass cracking echoed throughout the room. She was breathing heavily and shaking uncontrollably. Confused, Manta tilted his head to the side and blinked. What was wrong with Anna today? 

"YOH!!" she screeched, leaving the picture on the counter as she made a break for the hot tub. 

Manta hopped down from his step ladder and went to examine the picture that seemed to bother Anna. He ran his fingers along the cracks, curiously, trying to identify the three figures. The two on the outside were obviously Yoh and Anna, smiling as they playfully posed for the picture, probably about the age of five. Anna clung to the right arm of the middle figure and Yoh had his arms lazily drapped over its shoulders. His best guess was that it was a young girl, about the same age. She had a pale skinned face lined by dark ebony hair, which only made the blue orbs that were most likely her eyes more apparent. Her body had less cracks in the glass; she was dressed poorly in comparison to the two. 

"I wonder who this is...?" 

-- * -- 

Amidamaru and Yoh curiously headed down the dark stairwell, with Anna and Manta close in tow. Manta had decided to spend the night. It was probably around one in the morning; the sound of something heavy and made of glass crash to the ground echoed throughout the downstairs. 

What do you think it is?" Manta asked. "A burglar?" 

"Don't be stupid," Anna hissed, "a burglar wouldn't waste time in this kind of place. And if he would, he's pretty stupid." 

"C'mon you two," Yoh chuckled, "let's just find out then go to bed." 

"Sounds good," Manta agreed. 

There was no proper light on so the group found themselves stumbling around in the darkness until Yoh found the lightswitch. Once there was light the boys discovered that Anna had taken it upon herself to pick up up a baseball bat. She had it lazily resting over her left shoulder as she watched the kitchen. 

There was a series of chirps, squeaks and the clatter of whatever kept falling to the ground. 

"What is it doing?" Manta asked, shuddering as an awful slurping-slash-chomping sound came from the other room. 

"I sense the presence of another spirit," Amidamaru observed, crossing his arms. 

"Check it out, Yoh," Anna ordered, thrusting the bat at him. 

He shrugged and took the bat then headed into the darkness of the kitchen, with Amidamaru following closely. 

"Pori pori..." There was the strange giggle before the sound of something noisily scarfed down, then was repeated, "pori pori!" 

"It sounds sorta cute," Yoh laughed. 

"Keep your guard up, Lord Yoh," Amidamaru warned. 

Agi agi!" 

"Where's the lightswitch?" Yoh sighed. 

The voice continued to laugh and declare random things, seemingly oblivious to their presence as it ate away. Yoh grinned to himself as he listened to it and searched for the lightswitch. He could tell the Amidamaru seemd annoyed by it and was on his guard, but being too tense was just not his thing. 

Yoh smiled upon finding the lightswitch and flicked it on. 

"There!" 

"Kiiii!" 

There was a flash of purple or pink to accompany the cry, then nothing. Yoh placed his hand over his now racing heart. He had not been expecting it to have such a wild, scared reaction. He looked over to Amidamaru and saw that the ancient spirit was also shaken. 

"Where did it go?" Yoh asked softly. 

"What was that sound?" Manta gasped, peeking in. 

"It was a Nekokuku," Amidamaru said darkly. "A rather strange one, at that." 

"Meso meso... meso meso..." 

Anna walked into the room and gave it the once over. There was so sign of the supposed Nekokuku. Its location was hard to determine, but there was no denying that it was in the room. Manta and Yoh fell back as she began a thorough search of the kitchen. Amidamaru's gaze was intensely fixated on one cabnet. 

"Lord Yoh, leave some warm milk for it in a saucer on that counter," he instructed, pointing to the left. 

Anna stopped and stared at the two boys. 

"Hey, do you think this has anything to do with that picture?" Manta asked suddenly, recalling the parcel. 

"It might be," Yoh agreed thoughtfully. "Maybe a shaman trying to shake us up." 

"If that's the case, then let's just get rid of the pest," Anna hissed. 

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Alright, that's part one. Dedicated to the first four people who reviewed when I placed the temp. part up. I hope that I get some reviews, and the second I find that first one, the next part will be in progress! 

Ja ne,   
- Nekura 


	2. Haruhina and Shiitake Arrive

**Note: Shi'itake is a Japanese mushroom. I thought the name was cute, the person the character is based on... she didn't like it so much, but oh well!  
  
Sound Effects/Japanese used:  
  
chun chun: "chirp chirp" // chichichi: how to call a cat // -dono: Lord // piku: twitch // piyo: peep // icha icha: displaying public affection // gussuri: deep sleep // tsuya tsuya: shining or glowing // kyururu/kukyururu: tummy growling // uka uka: daydreaming // tehe: teehee;giggle // gokun: gulp;swallow // goro goro: purr purr  
  
Part Two: Shi'itake and Haruhina Arrive  
  
---------------------------  
  
"We can't just 'get rid' of it, can we?" Manta protested innocently.  
  
"Chun chun!"  
  
Anna shook her head slowly. The Nekokuku, she decided to put emphasis on the "kuku", was similar to one she had seen before. It was prone to making random sound effects, just as the one from her old village was.  
  
"Shi-itake?"  
  
"Huh?" Yoh looked at her, baffled. "You think that's her?"  
  
She shrugged, "more than likely. It's just as annoying."  
  
"Chichichi."  
  
"What are you doing, Amidamaru?" Manta asked.  
  
"Is this not how you call a cat?" he retorted.  
  
"Well, yeah, but..."  
  
As the discussions continued, no one noticed the small, magenta furball emerge from the cabnit. It was cute, with big blue eyes and small claws for hands. It was puffy, giving it a spherical shape, and most of its arms were hidden. It silently watched them, unmoving, while it patiently waited to be spotted.  
  
"Huh?" Amidamaru was the first to notice it. "Yoh-dono, it has emerged!"  
  
"Piku?" It tilted its head to the side. "Piyo?"  
  
"I think you were right, Anna."  
  
She ignored all of them and stared at the Nekokuku. It appeared to be the same one from their village, but it had not lived there for over two years. Its shaman partner was a girl -- more of a young woman -- named Haruko. She was four years older than them and everyone that knew her called her Haru. They had trained together since she was five. She had bright blond hair and emerald eyes; she was the most beautiful of the girls in the village. But they had not been seen nor heard from in those two years they had gone off to train in. Why was Shi'itake here now? And did it have something to do with the picture sent?  
  
"Yoh-nyo!" it squealed, leaping to nuzzle Yoh's neck. "Icha icha!"  
  
He laughed, helping guide the small spirit to his shoulder. As far back as he could remember, Shi-chan (as he called it) was a good friend. She was loyal and always tried to keep an eye on him, unless she was training with Haru. He was probably the only one who knew, besides Haru, that it was female. He had never really taken to being a shaman too seriously; he wanted to be a normal child with friends, but that would never be. Growing up, it was just Anna, Haru, Shi and Yuuki that would hang around him.  
  
"At least it didn't get even stupider since we last saw it," Anna commented, placing her hands on her hips; she sighed, seeing Yoh's actions and added, "I don't want you encouraging it. It's gone in the morning."  
  
"Oh, c'mon Anna," Yoh laughed. "She came from who-knows-where just to see us. We should let her rest up longer than one night."  
  
Manta examined the Nekokuku, and the affectionate manner it greeted Yoh with. Yoh seemed to be excited to see it. He - Manta - had read about this type of spirit in the Encyclopedia of the Supernatural. They were a rare species with strong magical abilities. To underestimate one of these creatures was asking for it; they appeared cute and harmless, but one attack could leave an unsuspecting opponent dead.  
  
"Haru-nyo!" she declared. "Gussuri!"  
  
"It's sorta... cute...?" Manta said finally.  
  
"Piku!" Her eyes snapped open and stared at Manta. "Kawaii-nyo!"  
  
He laughed, sounding a little relieved. Even Amidamaru seemed amused by the spirit. Anna, however, turned to leave. She stopped abruptly at the spirit's next words.  
  
"Yuuki-nyo!" She leapt from Yoh's shoulder to the counter where the picture frame was, then bounced a few times. "Yuuki-nyo! Yuuki-nyo!"  
  
"Yu-Yuuki?" Manta inquired. "Is that the name of the girl in the picture?"  
  
"Hai-nyo!" It bounced a few more times.  
  
Anna looked at the spirit curiously. Yuuki Maya, the full name of the girl in the photo, had died eight years ago. She was a servant of the Kyouyama household until a pack of wolf spirits killed her. No body was found in the forest, but there was rumored to be blood all over some of the paths, and shreded cloth scattered about. She had cried when the news was delivered, but that was nothing in comparison to Yoh's reaction. She cried, maybe for an hour or two, but Yoh, more in touch with his feelings and closer to Yuuki, did not get over it for years.  
  
After a while, he just began to withdraw from everyone, as they did he.  
  
"Heh... even with the damage... her image is so clear," Yoh commented. "Shi'itake, let's go to bed. It's late."  
  
"Hai-nyo!" She bounced then playfully chansed after him. "Yoh-nyo~!"  
  
Silently Amidamaru retreated to his place, guarding over the house. Anna and Manta were left, silent, in the kitchen.  
  
"Hey, Anna, did Yoh seem upset to you?" Manta asked softly.  
  
"Of course. Yuuki died eight years ago. They were really good friends."  
  
-- * --  
  
that morning was a sunny one, and hot as hell. For the first time in a long while Anna let Yoh and Kanta sleep in, while she went about doing some personal chores in the city. The moment she left the house she could feel a pair of eyes on her, as she had the day before. She discared Shi as the culprit; the spirit was curled up against Yoh and gave no sign of moving when she had checked earlier. She thought that Haruhina may have been the one -- Shi would not be around without her shaman partner, but why Haru did not make herself apparent was beyond her.  
  
But poor Yoh! The stupid spirit was a reminder of lost friends. Yuuki was a sweet girl, not bitter from having no parents, and though she would not admit it to the living, she could see spirits. Anna could see her parents letting go of the young servant girl, considering giving her a full life, for within Yuuki was a secret few others knew of. Her destiny was predetermined, and spirits of all kinds knew it; they came to her from all ends of the world until her death. Then they all just disappeared and everyone was forced to move on.  
  
~ "Hey, Anna-sama, have you ever heard of the saying 'the past haunts those who do wrong'? Doukyishi said that to me... I wonder what he meant by that. " ~  
  
She sighed heavily. This was too strange. First that picture, then Shi'itake... what was next? This chain of events worried her; they were connected, somehow, but she could not place them. And why not? This should have been simple. Her first thoughts were that this related to Yuuki, but Yuuki had been dead for eight years, and why would her spirit cause an mischief?  
  
So why?  
  
She began searching around herself in a highly paranoid manner, expecting someone, or something, to pop out of the shadows.  
  
'Get a grip,' she scolded herself. It was going to be such a long day.  
  
-- * --  
  
Anna did not return home until late in the afternoon; instead of shopping she decided to question local spirits and other shaman in the vicinity. She had found out that a new shaman had recently journeyed to Tokyo, from a temple somewhere out in the mountains. The shaman was female, with black hair and stunning blue eyes -- she sounded a whole lot like Yuuki, except -- both she and her spirit partner were brutal opponents, and left any and all competition in the hospital. For that, she checked the hospital; ten shaman were either in comas or critical contition, thirteen wew wounded, but not enough to kill them, and there were six others rumored to have battled her, yet there were no traces of them.  
  
She managed to speak with two of the thirteen wounded shaman, but found few answers. Neither managed to produce a name, and suddenly began to ramble about 'oncoming darkness'. Fear consumed them, their eyes dulling to the point where they resembled the living dead, and that unnerved her.  
  
"Tsuya tsuya!" She was greeted by the Nekokuku. It bounced around as if someone had fed it mass amounts of caffine. "Anna-nyo! Anna-nyo! Kyururu! Kukyururu!"  
  
She stopped on the stone walk wat and stared at the annoying fuzzball. It *was* cute, when you took away the mass amount of energy that let it be this annoying. Its big, pleading blue eyes were what always let it get into the hearts of the unsuspecting.  
  
"Uka uka, Anna-nyo?"  
  
It stopped bouncing and stared straight up at her. Their eyes met and the world seemed to stop. Looking directly into those eyes as she had never dome before shed a different light. A cold breeze passed by the sill figures, and Anna forced herself to look away. Age, wisdom, knowledge, pain, understanding, fear -- it was all in there. Shi'itake was an old spirit of many years; she had seen and lived through many things, lost more than her fair share of shaman partners, and yet through that darkness an inevitable light shone.  
  
She leaned down to pat it on the head a few times, then headed inside.  
  
"Tadaima!" she called to no one in particular. No one replied, but it did not bother her. Shi slipped in through her legs, exclaiming "tehe", then rushed into the shadows of the house. "Shi-chan..."  
  
She flicked lightswitches on in her path towards the kitchen where Shi's whines were coming from. Shi could not speak as Amidamaru could, so no harm would come to her tough-as-nails reputation if she fixed the little critter a snack.  
  
"You want sushi?" she offered. "Sashimi?"  
  
"Haihai-nyo!" it exclaimed, bouncing around the floor, over Anna's feet, doing whatever acrobatics it could think of.  
  
She laughed, kneeling down to pick Shi up, then tossed it onto the table. She went to the fridge and rummaged through to pull out some leftover sushi from the night before. She pulled out a plate and began to place the sushi out. She then went over and placed in front of Shi.  
  
"Gokun gokun!" Shi ate without chewing, sucking in the sushi in a very Kirby-like manner. "Goro goro!"  
  
She, Anna, smiled as she watched Shi eat. It was entertaining, but only lasted for five minuts. She had not felt so carefree in years, as sad as that sounded, and most recently was the total opposite. She was always worrying about for Yoh, even when it really seemed she was not. She knew in her heart that Yoh would become Shaman King and she would see that day come into existance, but some battles just got too close for comfort.  
  
"Will Haru be joining us?" Anna asked softly.  
  
Shi bounced a few times before replying, "hai-nyo!"  
  
"Not for a little while..." She was used to its limited vocabulary, and could sometimes figure out what it was trying to tell her. "I don't really understand..."  
  
It made a laughing sound and began bouncing around once again. It was annoying and confusing, yet she could not bring herself to get angry at it.  
  
"Where is he?" she growled, turning her frustration to Yoh.  
  
"Tadaima!"  
  
"Tadaima!"  
  
Her expression grew cold and angry, and she crossed her arms as she stared at the kitchen doorway. She could not explain why that was the instant reaction, it just was. Almost like she had a fear to be seen in any other light than the one she let them see. She could work him ragged, and then still show no mercy. Only Manta had seen her worry, but he was smart enough to not comment on it.  
  
"Oh, Shi-chan's in here with you!" Yoh grinned as he peeked in the kitchen doorway. He then noticed her expression and stepped in, his expression becoming serious. "Something bothering you, Anna?"  
  
"Where have you been?" she snapped, using her sternest tones.  
  
"When we woke up you were gone, it was late in the morning," he explained calmly, "so we had a quick brunch and have been training ever since."  
  
She did not really want a whole report of what he had done all day, but that was the greeting which left her mouth. She could never imagine herself explaining how worried she was when she discovered that he was not home. Yoh did not focus on his own, and that left her the tedious task of planning his training, toning his skills, working out his diet, and then listening to his complaints as she forced him to follow through. That happened daily, but to ensure that he became Shaman King, it was completely necessary. That was the only way. She had no other choice than to mercilessly push him, to ensure that his next fight would not be his last.  
  
Being a shaman of this generation was dangerous. And with that pyschopath of the loose, she could lose him at any moment. In all honest truth, she was just plain terrified of losing him.  
  
"Oh, Haru's in the livingroom with Manta," he stated. With a shrill cry Shi bolted to meet up with her shaman partner.  
  
"There's a new shaman in the area," Anna said in a low voice.  
  
"With the tournament coming up, isn't there always?" he laughed.  
  
"It's not a joke!" The kitchen fell dead silent, and perhaps even the entire house after she screamed at him. "Twenty-nine shaman have been rumored to have unofficially battled her. She has no name, from what I have gathered." Her voice had begun to lower, though the tones remained stern. "Ten nearly died, thirteen ended up in the hospital, but are guaranteed to make it."  
  
"What about the other nine?" Yoh asked after counting in his head.  
  
"You mean six," she corrected. "And what about them? No one knows. They've just disappeared."  
  
"Weird..."  
  
"Watch your back, Yoh. Please be careful."  
  
He stared at her as if seeing her for the first time. Her cold demeanour had slipped away, and she was standing before him naked and defenseless.  
  
"I don't want to lose you..."  
  
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Did everyone like that? ^-^ Please review, and thank you to everyone who took the time to read.  
  
- Nekura 


End file.
